Tubular article and method of making same



Oct. 10, 1939. J. o. cTE- 2,175 283 v TUBULAR ARTICLE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed July 25, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l lnven/br a Josezi O. Cofie Oct. 10, 1939. vJ, Q c611; 2,175,283

' TUBULAR ARTICLE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed July 25, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 cnwomcm.

FIG/3.

5 Jose 60 Patented Oct. 10, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TUBULAR ARTICLE AND; METHOD OF MAK- ING SAME 13 Claims.

This invention relates to tubular articles of leather or other flexible sheet material having a surface finish which does not extend over the edge surfaces formed by cutting the sheet and relates to a method of making such articles. More particularly the invention relates to tubular articles of leather, or other material as above, made by sewing the edges of a sheet or strip to- I gether and characterized in that the edge surfaces of the material are entirely concealed and the finished surface of the material is continuous around the circumferences of the articles, the said edge surfaces being in abutting relation. The invention relates also to the peculiar methods of making such articles.

It has been known for many years to produce round or flat tubular articles of leather, such as dog collars, dog leashes, harness parts, whips, belts and many other articles, by folding a strip of leather lengthwise so that two layers or thicknesses of leather are provided which are parallel adjacent the edge surfaces thereof and which two edge surfaces lie side by side in a single plane and then stitching through both thicknesses of material; trimming off the edge portions of the leather as close as possible to the stitches; forming the article in dies or rolls so as to force the projecting raw edge surfaces as nearly as possible into the plane of the outer surface of the article;

and then staining and polishing the raw edges to resemble as nearly as possible the outer or hair surface of the leather. This method has several great disadvantages, namely, the exposed edge surfaces of the leather rarely, if ever, remain flush with the finished outer surface of the article but project therefrom forming an unsightly and otherwise objectionable ridge; the lips formed in pressing the edge surfaces rise above the finished surface of the leather and become frayed and un- 0' sightly; the edge surfaces cannot be made to resemble the finished surface of the leather but in time lose their polish and become frayed and unsightly; also, the stain frequently comes out of the edge surfaces, soiling the users hands or articles 5 in contact with such edges and leaving the edges themselves unsightly and very different in appearance from the finished surface of the leather. Moreover the process causes a considerable waste of leather in the trimming operation (which may 5 be as high as 20%in small articles) and involves the additional steps of trimming, pressing, staining and polishing the edges.

The objects of the present invention are to overcome the above noted disadvantages of existing methods and products and to produce superior articles with less expenditure of material and labour.

According to the present invention a strip of leather is cut to a width equal to the desired outer circumference of the finished article, the edges 5 of the strip prepared for sewing, the strip folded lengthwise and the edges sewed together in such a way that when the article is finally formed the edge surfaces are brought into abutting relation and the finished surface of the leather is continuous around the circumference of the article.

In greater detail the invention consists both as to method and product of the respective features and combinations hereinafter set forth together with all such modifications of detail or substitutions of equivalents as are within the scope of the appended claims.

Throughout the following description, for the sake of brevity the only material referred to is leather but it will be understood the invention is not thereby limited to this material.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate various, but by no means all, embodiments of the invention:-=

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of a strip of leather 25 prior to treatment according to this invention.

Fig.2 is a perspective view of the strip of Fig. 1 after rabbeting and channeling.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the rabbeted strip of 2 after beveling the outermost edges of the strip.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the strip of Fig. 3 after longitudinal folding and sewing together of the beveled edges with loose stitches.

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 showing the folded strip sewed together with tight stitches.

Fig. 6' is a perspective view of a sewed strip finished to hollow cylindrical form.

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of a narrow sewed strip finished to substantially solid cylindrical form.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a wide strip flattened after sewing to form a belt or the like.

Fig. 9 is a perspective View showing an alternative method of producing the effect-of a rabbeted strip of Fig. 2. I

Fig. 10 is a; perspective view of a beveled but unrabbeted strip.

Fig. 11 is a. perspective view showing the method of sewing the strip of Fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of a finished belt of modified form according to this invention.

Fig. 13 is a plan view of a finished article, such as a dog collar, formed according to this invention.

Fig. 14 is a fragmentary central longitudinal section of an article formed according to this invention showing the manner of attaching metal studs thereto.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 2! designates a strip of leather designed to be formed into a cylindrical or fiat article, the said strip having a width equal to the desired circumference of the finished article and having edge surfaces 22 susbtantially normal to the back and face surfaces 23 and 24 respectively. The edges of the strip may be parallel or otherwise according as the finished article is intended to be of uniform width or tapering; H v

The strip is rabbeted from the back along both edges as shown at 25 in Fig. 2 and may or may not be formed with a channel 26 on the back intermediate the rabbets 25. The channel serves merely to facilitate folding a narrow strip of relatively thick leather and may be and preferably is omitted where the width and thickness of the strip permit.

The rabbeted strip is then beveled from adjacent the roots of the rabbets to or substantially to the junctions of the edge surfaces and face of the leather, as at 21, soas to provide substantially knife edges 28, all as shown in Fig. 3. While it is in some cases preferable to bevel the strip after rabbeting the same, it will be understood the rabbeting and beveling may be done simultaneously.

The rabbeted and beveled strip is, if necessary, softened by soaking in water or other suitable liquid and is then folded longitudinally along its medial line so that the portions of the strip back on either side of the medial line are brought together with the inner edges of the rabbets arranged side by side in the same plane and the beveled surfaces facing but spaced apart.

The edge portions of the strip are now sewed together by a line of stitches 29, Figs. 4 and 5, which pass through the leather adjacent the inner edges of the beveling. The stitches may be loose as shown in Fig. 4, so as to avoid any appreciable drawing together of the edges 28, or the stitches may be tight so as to draw the beveled surfaces into abutting contact with one another and the edges 28 into contact or nearly into contact as shown in Fig. 5.

The sewed strip is now subjected to a forming operation in rolls or dies in process of which the sewed together edges are pressed toward the central fold and the article given a cylindrical form as in Figs. 6 and '7, or a flat form as in Fig. 8. In this forming operation the beveled surfaces 21 and the edges 28 are brought into close mutual contact, the raw beveled surfaces becoming concealed in the interior of the structure and the two edges 28 forming an almost invisible hair line between the rows of stitch loops, all as shown in Figs. 6, 7 and 8. When the strip is wide enough to form a tubular article, as shown in Fig. 6, the bore 39 may be left empty or a filling may be introduced either before or after the stitching operation. Narrow strips when sewed produce a substantially solid body, as shown in Fig. 7, in which the back of the strip is compressed and in contact with itself so that the bore is very small or is, for all practical purposes, eliminated. Forming of the article to cylindrical shape or to the fiat shape of Fig. 8 may be facilitated by introducing a tightly fitting cylindrical or flat metal mandrel or former into the folded and sewed strip. In the case of flat articles as shown in Fig. 8, for example waist belts, harness parts, large dog collars and the like, a suitable cementing agent may be introduced into the interior space indicated by the line 32 to hold the layers of leather against separation, but ordinarily this may be dispensed with as the leather when formed in a wet state and dried retains its shape.

It is to be noted particularly that articles formed according to this invention are characterized by the face or finished surface of the material being continuous around the entire circumference and by the raw edge surfaces remaining after rabbeting and beveling being in abutting contact and completely concealed in the interior of the articles. This eliminates the objectionable, raw, dyed and polished edge surfaces which are exposed in round articles as heretofore usually made which edges become frayed, rough and unsightly and from which the dye or stain frequently escapes onto the hands of the user or onto other articles. Flat articles, as shown in Fig. 8, also possess the same advantages over ordinary leather straps in which the cut edges and back are stained and polished. In the fiat articles according to this invention, the finished surface of the leather extends unbroken over both sides and over what may be called the edges 33 and no staining or polishing is required.

The rabbets 25 may be formed by cutting the edge portions of a single thickness of leather or an equivalent structure may be formed by cementing together two layers, 34 and 35, of leather of different widths, as shown in Fig. 9, the beveling being done to the edge portions of the wider strip either before or after the two layers are cemented together.

The rabbets or equivalent are extremely important as the inner edges thereof, which lie side by side in the folded strip, form a guide for the foot or feeler of the sewing machine and enable the stitching to be inserted in a straight line parallel with the edges 28. Without a definite guiding surface the stitching would tend to run out at the edges 28, or if sufficient lateral pressure was applied to prevent this, the stitching would run in away from the edges 28. When making small articles of leather so thin. or soft that it cannot be rabbeted, the edge portions of a strip Zi are beveled from the back to the face as shown at 2'1 in Fig. 10, and the strip is folded around a member 36 which may remain as a filling or core or may be removed. This member 36 presents a guide surface 37 between the facing beveled surfaces 27 and may be of leather, metal or other suitable material and of any suitable cross-section, not necessarily that shown in Fig, 11.

The invention may be adapted tothe production of ornamented articles, as shown in Fig. 12, by providing a rabbeted strip 38 formed of either one or two layers of leather, the rabbeting being in the finished surface 39, and folding a wider strip of differently coloured leather 40 around the edges of the first strip so that the edge portions of the strip 4!] fill the rabbets of the strip 38, the edge surfaces of the strip 40 being in abutting relation to the lateral edge surfaces formed by the rabbeting. The edges of the'strips 3B and 40 are then connected together by lines of stitching 4|.

In the production of round articles, such as dog collars or harness parts which require to be provided with buckles and eyelets, the end portions of a round article may be flattened, as shown at 12 in Fig. 13, fortheattachment of a buckle 43 and'for the insertion of eyelets 44. It will be noted that in these flattened portions no raw edges of the leather 'are'exposed.

In the production of ornamented'articles such as dog collars or harness parts decorated with metal studs, these may be very conveniently inserted and clinched in the interior of the article so that the prongs are not exposed and there is no liability of their chafing an animal. The method of inserting the studs is shown in Fig. 14, in which the studs 45 are driven through the seamless side of an article, such as shown in-Fig. 8, and are clinched-'against a thin metal bar inserted into the bore-of the leather article and withdrawn after the clinching operation.

From the foregoing description it will be readily understood that the method of this invention is a considerable improvement over the methods heretofore generally used in that it provides a product of better appearance and eliminates the steps of trimming, staining and polishing the raw edges of the leather after the articles have been sewed up. Also by reason of rabbeting the edges of the strip it is possible to sew close to the edges, thus eliminating loss of leather incident to using a wider strip than necessary in order that a sewing machine may have sufficient material to work on, and then trimming off the surplus leather. It will also be realized that the articles produced according to this invention are a great improvement over those produced according to methods heretofore in general use. The finished surface of the material is continuous around the circumference of the product and raw edge surfaces arecompletely concealed in the interior of the product, so that they do not detract from the appearance thereof, and do not require to be stained and polished. Also the surface of an article made according to this invention is quite smooth and pleasant feeling to the hand and is quite free from the sharp edged lips usually found in articles of the kind herein dealt with. By reason of the elimination of waste and the avoidance of certain steps of manufacture usually employed, articles produced according to this invention are not only of better appearance but may be produced at considerably lower cost than heretofore.

Articles to which the invention relates are, for example, harness parts, dog collars and leashes, whips, belts, handles and other tubular articles of leather or other material.

The term beveling or beveled as herein used is to be understood as indicating merely that the edge surface of the material is formed to an angle of less than with respect to the face of the material and is not to be understood as limiting to a very small angle.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is:

l. A method of making tubular articles of leather which comprises providing a strip of leather, providing a sewing guiding means spaced inwardly from an edge of said strip and extending lengthwise of the strip parallel with the edges thereof, beveling the edge portions of said strip from adjacent said guiding means to the edges of the strip, folding the strip in suchwise that the beveled surfaces are mutually facing and spaced apart by said guiding means, stitching the beveled edge portions of the strip together along a line approximately coinciding with the inner margins of the beveled surfaces and then subjecting the sewed strip to pressure directed in a manner to force the beveled edges toward the longitudinal medial line of the strip whereby the beveled surfaces'are pressed against each other and aredisposed inwardly of the outer surface of the article in complete concealment.

2. A. method of making tubular articles of leather which comprises providinga strip of leather, beveling the longitudinal edge portions of the strip from the back tothe finished surface of the leather, folding said strip along approximately its longitudinal medial line with the leather on opposite sides of the fold in close mutual contact and the finished surface thereof turned .outwardly, sewing the edge portions of the strip together along approximately the inner margins of the beveling and then pressing-the beveled edges toward the longitudinal medial line of the strip and against each other and inwardly of the outer surface of the article whereby the edges of the finished surface of the leather are brought into abutment and form a substantially invisible joint and said beveled surfaces are disposed in the interior of the article and in complete concealment.

3. A method of making tubular articles of leather which comprises forming rabbets in the longitudinal edge portions of a strip of leather from the back thereof, beveling the edge portions of the leather from adjacent the roots of said rabbets to the finished surface at the edges thereof, folding the strip along approximately its longitudinal medial line with the back inwards, stitching the beveled portions together along a line adjacent to and slightly outwards of the laterally facing surfaces of the rabbets while using said rabbet surfaces as a stitching guide, and then subjecting the sewed strip to pressure directed in a manner to force the beveled edges toward the longitudinal medial line of the strip whereby the beveled surfaces are pressed against each other and are disposed inwardly of the outer surface of the articlein complete concealment.

4. A method according to claim 3 having the additional step of cutting a channel in the back of the strip along its medial longitudinal line thereby toreduce the thickness of the strip through a portion of its width and facilitate folding of the strip.

5. A method according to claim 2 in which the sewing is performed with such tension of the thread that the beveled surfaces are drawn substantially into contact with each other.

6. A method according to claim 3 in which the forming of the rabbets is effected by cutting the edge portions of the leather from the back and from the edge surfaces.

'7. A method according to claim 3 in which the forming of the rabbets is effected by superposing a narrower strip upon the back of a wider strip.

8. A method according to claim 1 in which the sewing guide is provided by rabbeting the longitudinal edges of the strip.

9. A method according to claim 1 in which the sewing guide is provided by disposing a separate guiding member between the plies of the folded strip.

10. A tubular article formed of a strip of leather or other flexible material having the edge portions of the strip sewed together and characterized in that the cut edge surfaces of the material are pressed most tightly against one another at the outer surface of the article by the stitching and are entirely concealed within the article and the finished surface of the material is continuous throughout the entire circumference of the article.

11. A tubular article comprising a strip of leather or other flexible material having the edge surfaces thereof formed at an angle of less than 90 to the face of the strip and connected together, the said edge surfaces being in most tightly abutting relation at the circumference of the article and disposed within the circumference of the article in concealment.

12. A substantially cylindrical leather article having little or no axial bore and being formed of a strip of leather or other flexible material having the edge portions of the strip sewed together, characterized in that the edge surfaces of the strip extend inwardly from the outer surface of the article in closely abutting relation and in concealment 13. A tubular article comprising a longitudinally folded strip of leather or other flexible material having its edge surfaces initially formed at an angle of less than 90 to the face of the strip, the edge surfaces of said strip in its folded form extending inwardly from the outer surface of the article and being completely concealed and pressed together most tightly at the surface of the article and stitching securing said strip in folded form and securing the edge surfaces thereof in their position of concealment. A

V JOSEPH O. COTE. 

